The Trip To Italy

More of the same from Coogan and Brydon, and so of course it's very funny. As with their first trip, hunt out the six episode series rather than the film.

Have to keep reminding myself it’s fiction. I’m not quite sure the purpose overall but the setting is beautiful and the impressions spot on.

I had a lot of fun with this as well. Felt like it kept around all the best parts of the first movie, first and foremost their lovely banter. It certainly managed to capture the almost overbearing beauty of their surroundings. Coogan was a little hard to pinpoint in this one, switching between being a miserable sod and being weirdly content and magnanimous. That said, it is no great work of art but sometimes just being in a beautiful place in the company of two loveable idiots is enough.

Almost as good as the first, but it didn't really add anything. It's still funny and the landscapes make it at least fun to watch.

Amusing.

Quite self-indulgent whatever way you look at it. The impressions and quotes are the most rewarding part but, perhaps unsurprisingly, they did overplay those cards a little bit as well. Coogan and Brydon are a good sport and this is a well-meaning, agreeable little film, but it does fall flat some of the time.

If you enjoyed the last film, you'll watch this one. The scene with the mock-Parkinson interview is unbelievably funny, surely matching the dueling Caines from the original, and the laughs otherwise come solidly throughout. Of course, we don't really care about these people's lives, but that's not the point, and we should be grateful that the film focuses mostly on the comedy.

While basically being the same thing, I think this was a bit better than The Trip. It probably doesn't hurt that many of the locations they visit in Italy are truly gorgeous. It was present in the first series/film, but I really liked the melancholy feel it had, among all the witty remarks and impressions. That being said, I don't think the dramatic elements were fully-formed enough. I also loved the Alanis Morissette sequences. I'd be happy if they did another series, for sure.

Brydon gets too much focus in an inferior sequel.

Yummy food, gorgeous scenery, the English romantics and the small man in a box. What's not to like?

Travelogue with two snobs eating weird food and talking shit. Now, it would be hard to convince anyone to watch something like this if those two snobs weren't Brydon and Coogan. Have to admit, these guys got British wit, especially considering that most of the dialog is improvised. I wish they would cut down on impersonations, though. I haven't seen the miniseries this film is made from, but I expect it is a more enjoyable watch.

The improvisation and chemistry between Coogan and Brydon is fantastic. This, however, does not necessarily make for a good film.

If you enjoyed Coogan and Brydon's previous comedic outings, then odds are you'll enjoy The Trip to Italy. While the leads display undeniable chemistry, their performances come across as a indulgent. There is plenty of premise but little plot. The impressions are funny, but do occasionally get tiresome. The remaining drama well-paced, well-written and well-acted, but the melancholic tone feels like a downer. While enjoyable, the film works better in its segmented TV format.

A nice enough film with occasional spots of comedy, but not one to watch again

Nicely paced sequel that improves upon the chemistry between the two leads while turning serious in at least one way that strains the whole project. Coogan seems to play more of a straight man here than in the original, allowing Brydon to do his shtick almost uninterrupted at times. Coogan's dry responses work beautifully opposite Brydon. As for the serious turn, the film takes one character toward a moral fork in the road without really earning the weight required of the moment.

It's very much similar to the first, eat food, do impressions, discuss random things involving the surroundings. If you like Coogan and Brydon you'll probably like this.

It's funny. A couple of buffoons travel around Italy eating, drinking, and making wise. I think Batman was in this too, not sure though.

More of the same, slightly diminished returns. The focus seems to be slightly more on Brydon than Coogan this time, which doesn't exactly help things.

Some fine-looking cuisine and Italian landscapes and that's pretty much it. The film version's conclusion is completely unsatisfying; it feels like the story just turned off before anything was resolved, and it wasn't in a manner that was compellingly ambiguous. The Trip was a film with a lot more meat in the middle; there was so much made the dynamic between the duo engaging beyond their basic comedy skills that is completely absent in the sequel.

The worst Winterbottom movie I ever watched. I guess this movie is funded by Italian tourism authorities...

fun little documentary like movie with an overdose of celebrity impersonations

I only just found out this was a TV serial first, but as a film, it isn't fantastic. Coogan and Brydon have great chemistry, and it's a lot of fun when they're just playing off each other making jokes, but I really don't need another movie about how it's hard to be an aging white man, even if it is through the lens of how it's hard to be an aging comedian.

The food looked delicious, and the views were incredible, but I just couldn't get through this movie. I really wouldn't mind if I never ran into these two Brits again.

Didn't know this was edited from a a TV series. Probably works better in that format. 6 TV-episodes edited into a 2-hour film ends up feeling like it lacks focus. Brydon and Coogan have very entertaining chemistry.

Brydon comes out of his box compared to the first course. Bit of a role swap in terms of the plot between Coogan & Brydon. Highlight by far is the Pompei sequence.

If you liked the first one, there's not much reason to not like this one. You could argue it's not different enough, but that's what I like about it. These two movies have felt very realistic so it seems suitable to not introduce any dramatic conflict or intense characterisation into them, they're nuanced and mild-mannered much like life itself. My only big complaint is that the meals didn't look as tasty as in the first one (but I suppose I'm not that big into Italian food).

There's a general sense of déjà-vu to the proceedings - even the melancholy of the midlife crisis that brought relevance to the first part doesn't fully connect. Standing in for it is the deep beauty and freshness of the Italian coast. Winterbottom even lets opera and sunsets do the heavy lifting. PS: The edited film version is inferior to the six part TV one - the distance between episodes helps.